Programs and Degrees

Committee on Studies

As soon as possible after passing the comprehensive coursework, the student will choose a faculty advisor and form a Committee on Studies. This must take place in the first semester in the program for a student already in possession of a graduate degree, and at any rate before 24 credit hours of graduate study are completed in the program.

The committee consists of a chairperson and three to four other faculty members. The chair must be a regular faculty member approved by the student’s graduate unit. At least one faculty member must be from a department other than Computer Science, and one may be from a university other than the one at which the student is enrolled (but only if this faculty member plays a significant role in the student’s research area). The committee will act as advisor to the student for the remainder of the program, help the student in drafting a plan of studies consistent with the student’s preferred orientation, review the choice of a dissertation topic, and meet at least once a semester with the student to review the progress made and suggest changes if necessary.

A student may ask for a change in the composition of the committee, or even select another advisor. In so doing, however, the student nullifies the decisions taken by the original committee and thus may have to repeat some steps, at the discretion of the new committee.